Laidback Seventies & Early Eighties Soul

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Ben E. King in the park
Last week Ben E. King passed away. He was mainly known as the lead singer of the Drifters and his solo classic ‘Stand by me’, which was covered by almost everyone in the music industry, from John Lennon to Maurice White. After his success period Ben E. King struggled to get into the right musical direction. In 1970 King was forced to make a living touring the oldies circuit. In 1975, Atlantic president Ahmet Ertegun caught King's act in a Miami lounge and invited him to re-sign with the label. King scored an unlikely comeback smash with the (early) disco track ‘Supernatural Thing, Part I,’ penned by then background singer Gwen Guthrie. The song returned him to #1 on the R&B and Disco charts and it reached #5 on the Billboard Hot 100. He then went to the Sigma Sound Studios in Philadelphia to record a Philly soul album. Although ‘I had a love’ was made with the best musicians and songwriters of the time, it failed to chart. This is a mystery to me, because I think it’s his best album. His baritone voice together with the lush Philly orchestration is a perfect combination. Check out the tracks ‘Smooth sailing’, ‘No danger ahead’ and ‘We got love’ and you know what I mean.

Tracklist:

Ben E. King – Supernatural Thing [Part 1] (1975)
Darcus – Exactly How I Feel (1977)
Myles Sanko – My Inspiration (2015)
Bluey – More Than Getting By (2015)
Melissa Manchester – I Wanna Be Where You Are (1977)
Ben E. King – We Got Love (1976)
Quincy Jones Feat. Paulette McWilliams – Mellow Madness (1975)
Midnight Flyer – I Just Want To Love You (1974)
Ray Parker Jr. & Raydio – A Woman Needs Love (Just Like You Do) (1981)
Starpoint – I Got The Love (1983)
Pete Warner – I Just Want To Spend My Life With You (1975)
Robert Byrne – I Did It All For Love (1979)
Paul Davis – Cool Night (1981)
Valentine Brothers – Love Me Like You Mean It (1979)
Randy Crawford – Same Old Story (1980)
Heatwave – Goin’ Crazy (1980)
Daryl Hall & John Oates – Kiss On My List (1980)
Carly Simon – Why (1982)
Charme ‎– Georgy Porgy [Remixed Version] (1982)
Greg Phillinganes – Girl Talk (1981)
Frank Weber – Take It To The Limit (1980)

Laidback Seventies & Early Eighties Soul by Professor Eddy on Mixcloud

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